derbyamerica:

I saw this post by veteran skater Bela Lowblowsi today, after having just returned home from playing in Texas this weekend. I just wanted to share it:

Someone suggested this weekend that if one wanted to be taken seriously as an athlete then they need to lose the fish nets and worry let less a about how they looked and more about skating….I would love for some to tell me that I don’t take my sport seriously. why don’t I also stop getting tattoos and dying my hair because everyone know that people that do those sorts of things are all good for nothing, unintelligent, criminally minded people. If your ever going to be take seriously then you better fall in to line and blend in with the crowd. Please tell me that this sport is not going to turn into a sport for jockish, elitist, ass-pies. I’m pretty sure I can skate just as well with my fish-nets and make-up on. I would have love for this person to have said that to me because I would have personlly ‘on the track’ shown her how serious I am.

i can understand where that person is coming from. they might be thinking that since most ‘official’ sports have players in specific uniforms with their real names on them that roller derby has to go this route to become an official sport as well. yet i think we really do need to challenge this way of thinking. we need them to think it through. the person who wrote: ”I’m pretty sure I can skate just as well with my fish-nets and make-up on.”is completely right. why do something in uniforms when you can do it in fishnets? hell im sure more woman would start playing rugby if they could rock an awesome outfit while doing it. roller derby is about PASSION and FUN. Look at the roots of roller derby.. it was ALL about entertainment. why should we lose that? roller derby is about being strong, being brave its NOT about conforming. i think the reason why roller derby has become so popular is because it is a sport that IS different. we work our asses off out on the track and people see that, but they also see each girl as an individual. the names are fun, the outfits are outlandish. it’s chaotic. IT’S ROLLER DERBY. it’s NOT a cookie cutter sport.